The Scarlet Fantasy
by Justice Tokidoki
Summary: This was how it should be. Just the three of them. Sora had to believe that. His heart had been shattered one too many times. They were the only ones messed up enough to keep him together. Or at least, that's what Riku said. (AU) {Rated for Mature themes/violence, etc}
1. Chapter 1

**Do not own KH.**

 **This story is going to become pretty angsty/twisted really quickly. I will give more warnings depending on the content of each chapter.**

 **Anyway, sort of experimenting with my style in this one so criticism is highly appreciated.**

 **Justice T.**

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Intertwined

Sora stared at the shaking fruit. His brain performed a somersault, sending mixed signals to his eyes, transforming the star-shaped edible promise into a sparkling rock ready to burst it's bloody juices at their heads. Like a shooting star, it could destroy them all while carving a dent into their island. The crater would be named on the behalf of the tragic death of the three teens. So young, so bold, so brave, so daring . . . it would be a strange death.

But Sora figured it made sense. The Paopu legend would have proved to be just as dangerous and awe-inspiring as the books said. Or nothing would happen and they would be stuck feeling embarrassed as the mutated mango, or whatever the hell it was, caused their breath to stink of sugar and mango imitations. Or was it blackberry imitations. Sora narrowed his eyes, picturing vague images of farming, imports, agricultural lessons. The answer had to be school related.

Again, his brain did another somersault as a pointed end of the fruit was shoved toward him. Even though the whole motion had only taken a couple of seconds, his mind had been firing rapid images in a way that slowed everything that truly mattered down. Such like the fact that his soul was about to be forever bound to his smirking, silly, stupid, and ridiculously arrogant friends. Red faced, skin bumping, laughing maniacs, if he was really being honest. After an eternity of thinking he finally realized why there was a pointed end of a star-shaped fruit near his mouth and he struggled to find the words to say he was ready. None came so he decided to go with the next best decision; outrageous laughter.

To say they were wasted was an understatement. Sora wasn't sure how Riku had nabbed the beer, nor did he particularly care, but there was a small amount of him aware that they had all reached past the stage known as "drunk". The next day would probably bring hell, a fresh star-shaped hell that fried their brains every time a door was slammed, a car alarm blared, or a torpedo was fired. Okay, the torpedo thing was silly, Sora knew that, but anything could happen.

"Fuck, Sora, how long are you going to stare at it?" Riku said. It was telling that he hadn't slurred a single word despite drinking more than his friends. "Don't tell me you're getting cold feet."

"I . . . was thinking," Sora defended. It took a second too long just to open his mouth. He hoped that whatever had come out sounded like English at least.

From Riku's pointed expression it was obvious that Sora had failed. "Take a bite so that we can go home already. The sun is setting, and we don't need your mom on our ass."

Kairi pushed her way in between them, lips veering close to the pointed top of the fruit in between them. Her red hair was cropped, ragged cuts framing the edges that reached just past her earlobes. "Sora's mom is way too nice. It's my dad that would kill us." She sucked the tip of the point, shoulders relaxed as her hands clasped their hands in the sand.

Sora nearly ruined the ritual, jerking the fruit away from her. Any more force and it would have landed in the sand. "Hey! No cheating! We're supposed to eat it at the same time." He was proud of how clearly he spoke this time.

"It was just a taste," she mumbled, batting her eyelashes at him once before licking her lips. "It's sweet . . . too sweet. You sure this is the right one?"

Riku shrugged, tilting his head and his shaggy Blue-but-also-weirdly-silver hair moved with him as he gave Sora a dubious look. "He picked it."

Sora frowned, patience snapping away from him the moment Riku's eyes found him. He knew Riku didn't believe the legend. "Shut up. I know you guys think I'm stupid for wanting to do this. But trust me, this is the key to saving our friendship."

Riku nudged Kairi. "Hear that, Kai? He thinks we're going to abandon him when school starts. He's just scared."

Sora spluttered in shock. "Lies!"

Kairi giggled. "So what if he is? High school is kind of scary when you think about it. If we don't promise to stick together now, we could drift apart. Who knows what type of person we could become when it's over." She closed her eyes. "So if this helps us remember to keep our friendship alive, I think it's important that we finish this."

Riku leaned in towards them and they unconsciously huddled closer. "Forever is a long time, guys. What if one of us doesn't want to be connected after things change. We could all end up hating each other." He looked down, his voice uncharacteristically cold. "If we ever become enemies this promise becomes a curse."

Sora couldn't tell if Riku was being serious or if he was just in one of his "moods". "That won't happen," Sora said with a grin. "We stick together. Always."

Riku met his eyes than Kairi's and Sora knew his brain had decided to work right when the grey in Riku's eyes shifted to a light green. He took the first bite, followed by Kairi, and then Sora within seconds. There was a squishing sound, explosions of flavor and liquids combined with the smack of teeth and clicking jaws. Sora couldn't tell where the sounds were coming from. He was only aware of the orange liquid dripping down his chin as he took another bite, grabbing a part of the fruit. His fingers slid against his friends while his cheeks rubbed lightly against either Kairi or Riku depending on which way he chose to tilt his head. They were pressed in that close and the smell of them collided with the fruit.

In this moment, as the power of their star shrinked into their fingers, he felt a warmth somewhere in his chest as he licked his fingers. It spread out from his heart into the tips of his fingers and as he gasped. The sweetness of the orange promise, the familiar eyes, green and violet eyes, warmth . . . he knew that he would never forget this moment. In fact, it was the greatest moment of his fourteen-year existence on Destiny Islands (and his brain affirmed this as no other happy, soul-emphasizing moment came up in his head).

The sweetness danced with the alcohol in his body and he shuddered with pleasure. His stress, his fears, all washed away in one big release and he smiled.

And then his heart slammed into his chest. He brought up one hand, fighting his gag reflex, as the sweetness curled into his stomach, turning into something sour that spread up his throat. Kairi was coughing, and from her hunched position Sora could tell she was feeling the same thing.

Riku continued sucking his fingers, seemingly immune to whatever ill effects the Paopu had. He sounded calm when he said, "Well, it looks like we signed away our souls in a pact using rotten fruit." His smile could almost be called sympathetic but there was something else in his eyes that Sora couldn't decipher. Was it disappointment?

Kairi sat up, rubbing her eyes with rough motions before standing up. "Still worth it." She gave them both a wide grin before running away towards their canoes. "See you guys tomorrow! I have a good feeling about this year."

Rick simply grunted while Sora waved enthusiastically. Okay, so the Paopu wasn't perfect, but their intentions were clear. This was a good thing. Humming to himself, Sora stood up with some help from Riku and walked with him silently towards their optimistic companion. He could already feel the latent affects of the drinks taking place somewhere in his head and he imagined the day in a sunny glow, from finding the oddly shaped fruit at the tallest paopu tree to Riku passing around a lengthy bottle to set them in the mood.

As with most memories accompanied by bottle, the majority of this experience would fade from Sora's mind. Only the bare basics, like the taste of something sour and sweet, Kairi's hope, and Riku's silence as they rowed back home really registered years later. The one thing that bothered Sora about this night was that for the life of him he couldn't remember why he wanted to do this in the first place.

With college graduation crawling around the corner, he knew, without a doubt, that if he could he would never have shared a paopu with them. His heart was tainted, full of pain and grief, and he had to keep it as far away from Riku as possible.


	2. Chapter 2

**Warning: There be Smut. Not super detailed but sprinkled in never the less.**

 **Also, a note on pairings. There's a ton represented in this story. I may not get to everyone's favorite, but there will be hints, hook-ups, and maybe fantasy dreams.**

 **That said, hope you all enjoy reading this!**

 **Justice T.**

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It's Amazing before it gets Worse

The ceiling caved in, then swirled into the colors of the rainbow. The colors kept mixing and swirling into each other until everything went black. His eyes were closed now as the heat traveled below his chest, curling into a small ball in his stomach. Muscles were locking up in one disgruntled heap of confusion and panic. Everything felt right. It was all too good.

"God... Don't stop.." Sora nearly wanted to die when he felt his voice crack at the end of his plea. His body wanted to buck, but tanned muscular hands kept him in place. Despite their firm grip, Sora didn't feel restrained. It was like the person (whose face happened to be in between his legs) was taking care of him, making sure every ounce of pleasure could be felt before letting him fly free.

No one had made him this vulnerable. Not since freshman year...

No. Not then. He didn't want to think of back then, of them. He swore that he would never give those bastards anymore headspace. But, as usual, his heart wasn't cooperating. Instead, the ache just stalled his orgasm and his eyes snapped open.

In front of him Roxas was still expertly attending to him, mouth open enough to let a pink tongue travel around the tip of Sora's arousal. Oh, he was just teasing now.

The bitter memories were no surprise. Sora couldn't help but dissociate when Roxas' got like this. The golden haired devil knew damn well that Sora hated being teased. "Fuck, Rox," Sora snarled, "There's no need to show off."

The fully clothed devil raised eyes full of mischief and light in Sora's direction. The smirk followed and then a voice deeper than one would expect drifted towards him at a slow crawl. "But you love it. And I love seeing you like this. Squirming, screaming with your eyes. It's no fun without some suspense."

"I'm not... My reactions aren't that interesting." Sora unlaced his fingers from his "lover's" golden hair, almost jealous that the twisting curls returned to their previous state. Roxas was the only one who could sneak off and have sex without anyone being the wiser.

As for Sora's perpetual bed head of brown spikes, everyone knew when he had sex. Or at least they thought they knew (judging by the number of winks he'd receive while walking down the dorm room halls when all he did was wake up and have joe. A cup of joe. Not sex with joe).

But these days, they'd often be right. Before his thoughts could wander to the cruelty of genetics, Roxas started kissing him. Everything was right again.

And Sora hated it. He didn't deserve it, any of it, but he clung to Roxas as if it was the last time (which could be any day, really). He pushed as much passion as he could into the kiss without taking control. He had his role to play, so when Roxas' forced his mouth open he gave Roxas access to everything.

Being consumed could be uncomfortable. But, when you got used to it, when your body literally floated within the pleasure instead of outside of it, the benefits outweighed the comfort. Especially when you trusted the person.

His body was special. He could do what he wanted with it, but there was no denying the cautiousness that stuck to his bones like syrup. Sora had left it on for too long and now, as he tried to clean it with Roxas, the sticky residue had left a few stains.

But Roxas didn't care. Roxas couldn't see his heart, couldn't really pull out a secret with his eyes alone. There was no need for that, and Sora was grateful.

Only one person had seen that far into his core. The one person he could never forget... Or save.

The kissing left his mouth, allowing Sora to breathe. He barely took in a few well-needed doses of air when, suddenly, Roxas' tongue and teeth trailed a circular dance on his neck. That's when Sora knew his body was reaching a breaking point. Too close. Too fucking close to the 'spot' only one girl could find. He wouldn't be able to hold it in. "Crap, I'm going to come..."

"Good." A light pause in between teeth nipping and licking before Roxas did the impossible. He sucked Sora just above the collarbone and with a jolt there was a spasm of movement and a yell that quickly turned into a moan.

Eyes squinted shut, Sora felt a small part of himself cower inward. "You... Actually found it..."

Roxas sat up, getting his tight black shirt off. Then the ripped jeans had to go, and a blue pair of boxers quickly followed. Sora finally had a great reason (namely abs) to keep his eyes occupied. He couldn't look Roxas' in the face, not after that.

But of course, now was the time for Roxas' to be smart. Cold fingers nudged his chin up and Sora's tense breath hovered just beneath his partner's pleased smile. "I told you before, didn't I? Eventually I'll discover everything."

"Please... If you can, stop." Sora licked his lips. "What's in me isn't worth discovering."

"Says who?" He pushed a hand into Sora's hair, head tilting and leaving his mouth inches away from his new target. "I couldn't stop even if I tried."

"...why? Why me?"

Roxas shrugged. "I've been thinking on that a lot lately. Yesterday it hit me. But you're not going to like it."

Sora laughed. "I have tougher skin than you think."

Roxas didn't laugh with him. He didn't even smile. Instead he pushed Sora's face to the side and flipped him. "Shut up and quit posturing."

Great. Dirty talk only started when Roxas' was emotional about something. Not that Sora could see his face, but judging by the slap aimed so kindly (not) at his butt, a nerve had been struck. "Rox... You're too impatient."

It was a problem for both of them. They did this position often enough and it wasn't getting better. Foreplay never lasted long enough, and someone would forget the lube so Roxas would have to get creative and stretch him with his fingers. Sora, who would honestly never be ready considering anal was his least favorite, would then have to suck it up while Roxas slammed into him.

Then Sora would eventually get too loud, Roxas would get to guilt-ridden to finish, and everyone remained horny and unsatisfied. Unless... The objective was pain, then Roxas would be satisfied if he was in a mood and Sora would be satisfied if it was that type of day.

Sex had never seemed this complicated when he was in high school. But, then again, that was before he got addicted. And addictions made everything complicated.

And Riku was the one who turned him into this. Sora sighed. He hated thinking. "This won't work, man." The moment this thought escaped his mouth his butt tensed at the wet, cool moisture massaging his entrance.

Wait, there was lube?

Sora wanted to to turn and check, but he could only twitch as a hand shot forward, pinning his head in place. Flesh pressed against quivering flesh for a brief second as a determined voice whispered in his ear. "Don't move."

Gentle. Almost but not quite sweet. Roxas never talked like this. Sora was too stunned to move now, and the shock continued to mess with him as he slowly felt his shoulders and legs relax as Roxas' cold fingers pushed into him. This didn't just feel good. It was weird. Different.

"I want this to work," was the last thing Roxas said before Sora lost it to euphoria.

XxxxXXxxxX

One hour. It took one hour.

Forty to fifty minutes warming up, and only then had Sora been comfortable enough to accept Roxas' hard desire. And it awoke something primal in his being. No one had spent this much time on Sora. His heart was beating strong and true for the first time in years.

His lover remained silent, turned away, a light pink dust on his cheeks. Sora hugged him from behind, and for once, Roxas' let him. They were cuddling! The world had exploded and turned upside down, and no one thought to tell Sora today of all days.

Life was so fucking rude. But Sora loved it still. He could love again. He would love again! Finally, he no longer had to shield the holes in his chest. Each second filled him up. This moment couldn't be taken away.

And then his phone rang. Hmmm, should the moment be paused for this? Nah, Sora decided. But after the third ring Roxas broke through the haze. "Dude, it's yours."

Sora rolled his eyes. "Doesn't take a genius to know. Don't you dare move from the bed."

Instead of a speech about boundaries and hugging limits, Sora was surprised that all he got was a shrug. A shrug and butterflies in his stomach. He grinned and fished his phone out of his clothing pile. The number that appeared immediately shot his butterflies to the ground. Now there was a swarm in his stomach.

The caller ID read "Riku". He had prepared for this day. Today, a day of new love, would be the day he would delete this number and block it. The time was now. So, swallowing back his frown, he calmly went into phone settings. He slid his thumb to the left, hovering over the red button of death, when he received a single text message.

He dropped his phone. Hands scratched at clothes and skin in a combination that somehow got him dressed. He picked up the phone, stomped into his shoes, and yelled out a quick reply to a startled Roxas that meant everything and nothing all at once.

The moment his body left the apartment it didn't belong to him. Nothing was his and everything wasn't. The only thing pushing him forward was his heart, and the fragile organ was shattering and reforming over and over again with each beat. It was ready for Riku, ready for the damage Sora would never accept.


	3. Chapter 3

Broken Bonds Resurface

 **This is Kairi. Riku is in the hospital. Please come.**

That text. That damn text. It was amazing how a few words could make his heart rise and shatter. He felt like someone was squeezing it every other second and it hurt like hell. Considering how direct Kairi was he knew it had to be serious. His shame at leaving Roxas at such a sensitive time would have to wait. He hoped "Riku, Kairi, Hospital!" was a good enough explanation for now. It was all he could give before his body rushed him away.

His legs were transformed. Running helped him fly from one floor to the next as elevators would have slowed him down. Five minutes later he found his car, unlocked it with shaking motions, then slammed into the driver's seat, wincing. He closed the door and allowed himself a few precious seconds for breathing.

One. Two. Three. Breathe.

One. Two. Breathe.

One. The deepest breath he could muster.

He tilted his head back, rubbing his eyes. His phone buzzed again and he looked at it warily. Then his lips parted in shock as the words slowly made their way to his brain.

 **Sora, please wait. I'm right behind you.**

"Wait..." Sora slowly turned his head, blinking as he watched Roxas dash across the parking lot. He was moving so fast that Sora thought he was going to knock himself out when he reached the car.

Sora unlocked the doors and watched in awe as Roxas got into the seat roughly, somehow closing the door while simultaneously getting his seatbelt on. A few seconds passed with heavy breathing.

Sora swallowed, an unfamiliar emotion rising in his chest. "Rox..." He tried to get more words out but the tears were now streaming down his face. He didn't know how to show his gratitude.

Roxas huffed out a loud breath then glared at him. "Idiot, step on the gas and go!"

"R-right." His knuckles were white from gripping the wheel, so it hurt to turn it when he finally got on the road. His heart was racing for two reasons instead of one now. Thank god Roxas had shown up. He couldn't face Kairi and Riku alone right now...

But he now knew Roxas would shut down at any signs of thanks. His blank mask had returned, and his tone was blunt as he asked Sora if he knew where the hospital was. Though practical, this was the wrong thing to say.

"She... Didn't say." Sora shook once and his face paled. "God, what if one of them dies and I'm too late?"

"No. Calm down." Roxas held up Sora's phone, then read out the newest text. "That's the address. We'll make it."

"Traffic in that area is bad. Dammit." His breathing accelerated and a cool sensation slowly overtook his fingers. No, no, his body had the worst timing.

Roxas touched Sora's shoulder. "Stop the car."

Sora shuddered, then turned over to the curb. "Heh, you yell at me to book it and now we're stopping." He started laughing, but that quickly turned into ragged gasps as he struggled to get oxygen.

"Shhh, don't talk." Roxas' said softly, holding Sora's hands. "You're just nervous. Your friends need you to be awake when we see them. So, follow me and count to ten in your head."

Sora gave him a shaky smile even as he felt his stomach disappear. The feeling in his hands were gone, but he tried to squeeze Roxas' fingers back anyway. As Roxas counted Sora focused on the air leaving his body. He was fine. This was his mind playing tricks. Anxiety be damned.

After a few minutes of controlled breathing they switched places. With Roxas driving Sora thought he'd be able to relax, but his muscles remained strictly locked. He started rubbing his hands together just to give himself something to do.

Surprisingly, traffic slowly dispersed the closer they got to the hospital. It was a bleak, grey building with dark black metal proclaiming a name no one could pronounce correctly. After parking the walk to the building's entrance was uneventful but it still felt like a trek of doom to Sora.

You could say he hated hospitals, but that would only be scratching the surface. Approaching the counter was about as much as Sora could handle so after a few minutes of awkward staring Roxas took over and did the necessary talking to get them forward. Within a few more blinks in Sora's timeline they had reached the moment of truth.

Sora swallowed. "So he's in there," He said just as Kairi opened the door. Her red hair was pulled up in a bun and she had bags under her eyes. Her white shirt and pink skirt was in such bright contrast to her sympathetic expression that Sora nearly gagged.

"Long time no see. He... he just woke up, so I'll leave you two to talk," she said, sounding exhausted.

Sora sent Roxas a look and in response Roxas simply shoved him into the doorway. Shaking, Sora made his way further into the room, parting a set of blue curtains. The moment light green eyes locked with his hesitant blue pools, Sora knew the swarm in his chest wasn't going anywhere anytime soon.

Riku smiled. "You came."

Sora let out a grunt, sitting in a chair close to Riku's bed. "I guess so." He held back what would've been a awkward laugh, forcing himself to smile. "You done scaring me to death yet?"

The pain filled laugh he received in return made him wince. "God, Sora... I've missed that, you know? You're insensitive humor." His smile grew. "Who knows, maybe I'll die for real this time. Then you can be truly happy, right?" He coughed once, then laughed again.

Sora frowned and the swarm in his chest turned into a dark pit. "That's not what I want."

"Your face says otherwise." He shrugged. "But you know, I'm done fighting fate. If I go I go. Would be nice to have one last kiss before then though."

Sora slowly felt the mental walls crawling up around him. He let out a dead laugh, tilting his head. "Who did you screw over this time? Another crazy Ex?"

"You could say that." Riku slowly pushed himself up into a sitting position, body slightly shaking. It was only now that Sora noticed the multiple bandages wrapped around his chest and one of his wrists. "But for the first time it looks like I'm truly here of my own will."

An intake of breath. Cold. The room shrunk inward and it took everything to keep from running away. Sora shuddered. "Riku... are you saying you..." He couldn't finish it. His heart was panicking again.

"The doctors have it wrong. You know me, I'm not the type to do that." Riku stared at his bandaged wrist. "But, you know, I probably went overboard. It was the first time I went this far. Lesson learned."

"This isn't a joke!" Sora was surprised at the volume of his own voice, but he didn't stop his assault. "You can't keep doing this, Riku. It's not right."

"Like you're one to talk." Riku's face changed and inside Sora flinched. "How selfish can you get? You left so your opinion no longer matters."

Sora shook his head slowly. "Riku... I was your best friend. I really do care what happens to you. But I... I can't repeat what we did before. I had to leave because I was getting worse. I know-"

"Stop. This is pathetic, even for you." The eye roll hurt Sora more than the verbal poison being flung at him. "You do realize almost everything I've done in my life was for you. All I'm asking is for the favor to be returned. But, like always, you bailed on me. We all know you're a coward, so your denial isn't leading you anywhere."

Sora slowly stood, walking over to his friend slowly. He reached out, grabbing a chunk of long silver strands. He yanked Riku's head to the side, shuddering with some satisfaction when he heard the older male gasp in pain. He hated the power that flowed in him at that moment, but old habits died hard.

It was dangerous territory, Sora knew that, but he wasn't sure how else to reach Riku. He sucked in a breath, trying to keep his voice firm. "The favors you want... What you need to feel better is something I can't do anymore," Sora said. "No one will ever satisfy you. You need to accept that you have a problem. Kairi and I can't protect you forever."

Riku's laughter was genuine and Sora did his best to steel his own heart when he felt Riku's head leaning into his rough touch. Riku sighed. "The only way I can get you to touch me is by making you angry it seems."

"You didn't hear a word I said, did you?"

He felt his hand being pulled down as Riku grabbed his wrist, kissing Sora's open palm. "I heard it. But you're wrong." Riku smirked. "It's true that no one satisfies me. But you... I never felt like I needed extra with you. I realize that now."

 _God, no. Not again._ "You don't mean that," Sora said, pulling his hand back. "How many times do I have to say no!"

Riku gave him a small smile. "I didn't ask you for anything. I'm just telling you the truth. Look, I just want to talk again. I want to see you more outside of just a hospital visit out of obligation to Kairi."

"That's..." Sora looked away. "That's not fair. You're just going to want more."

"Really? It's funny, you accuse me of this and yet you could very well be describing yourself. We're the same. Once you understand that you'll come back." Riku shrugged. "I just have to wait."

 _Arrogant bastard._ Sora couldn't deny the power his former friend possessed. Despite being pale and contained within a hospital bed, there was a natural beauty to the young man. Currently Riku's thin pink lips had a bluish tint to them and his eyes were alert and attentive to Sora, never leaving his face. If Riku was standing the effect would be overwhelming.

Why? To still have this much of a presence when Riku was clearly the most vulnerable one here made no sense to Sora at all. It took a few more breaths for everything that was said to truly sink in. Sora slowly frowned. "Do what you want. I'm not coming back."

"You will. Because I know you."

Sora backed away, sighing. His heart was aching and he hated it. "Bye, Riku."

There was no reply back and Sora kept his eyes glued to the floor as he left the room.

* * *

 **Hey guys. Currently studying abroad so this chapter took more time than I'd like to finish. But nevertheless I'm still happy with the results.**

 **Hope everyone is enjoying their weekend! Any critiques would be highly appreciated.**

 **Justice T.**


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